ENGL 3940 Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: Edith Wharton, Dog Collar, Sled
3 Feb 2017
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Split between personal and the legal and/or historical. How does this complicate the reading experience. Connection between the wife and the dogs. Without first story (first person encounter) there"s a chance the reader might adapt the view of the judge/townspeople aka woman is crazy. Trying to understand the dogs as well as the woman"s life. Switches from uncanny tale to a story about a woman in an unhappy marriage who is being emotionally abused. Gap between what she thinks and what the law" thinks (i. e. killing the dogs) Current society sees killing animals associated with being a psychopath. As a reader you would tend to take on the perspective of anne, tend to be taken aback that the court doesn"t recognize killing dogs as a issue. Court reduces and simplifies anne"s ethical horror. Dog is the emblem of fidelity offensive comment. Almost accusing her of being unfaithful infidelity without the dog.
